Franchise star Devon Sawa offers a definitive response to the chances of his return in Final Destination: Bloodlines. Sawa played the protagonist of the original cult horror film, Alex Browning, who predicted the tragic fate of Flight 180, and sought to save his friends from Death coming back for them. He did so mostly in vain, in the end only being able to save himself and Clear Rivers (Ali Larter). In the second film, however, Alex is given, what is considered unsatisfying by many fans, an offscreen death of having a brick fall on his head.

In an interview with Forbes for his newly released slasher horror movie, Heart Eyes, Sawa confirms that he will not be coming back to the franchise in Final Destination: Bloodlines. Sawa does, however, say that he’s rooting for the new cast, especially Teo Briones, who played his son in Chucky season 1, and is interested in what the newcomers do with the franchise. Read his full comment below:

I’m not in it. Every movie has been a cast of new kids. Teo Briones, who played my son in the first season of Chucky, is in it, and so I’m rooting for him. I’ve seen every Final Destination movie in the theater. I can’t wait to see what the new cast does with it. Maybe one day in the future; who knows? I’m not in this one. I hear it’s really good, though.

What This Means For Final Destination: Bloodlines

So Far, There Is Only One OG Character Returning

Throughout the franchise, there’s been little room for returning characters. There was the rare instance of Clear returning to the franchise, being a pivotal character in Final Destination 2, but she also succumbed to Death in an oxygen explosion. The only character to appear in more than two Final Destination movies is the appropriately named William Bludworth (Tony Todd), who appears in four movies, including the upcoming Final Destination: Bloodlines.

Given the inevitable nature of the franchise, there isn’t much justification for having reoccurring characters, as most of them are destined for the creative deaths that predominantly drive the success of Final Destination. There may be chances for characters to reappear, though, in the same way Sawa’s Alex did in Final Destination 5, where it was revealed that the whole movie was a prequel to the original. It was considered a clever and satisfying twist for fans of the franchise. Though it shouldn’t be exploited, having characters reappear in a similar fashion could work.

Our Take On Alex Not Being In Final Destination: Bloodlines

Bringing Back OG Characters For A Legacy Sequel Could Be Satisfying, But That’s Not The Franchise’s Way

As said before, the nature of Final Destination makes the reappearance of a favorite character hard to sell. Even characters who survive the initial disaster and the bizarre chain of unfortunate events that follow die offscreen, like Alex, or Final Destination 2‘s Kimberly Corman and Thomas Burke. While it is a trend for legacy sequels to bring back original characters, Final Destination does no such thing, instead introducing a new roster of characters to kill.

This formula suits the franchise best, as, while I do at times enjoy the fan service of bringing back original characters, the main selling point of Final Destination is that its characters cannot escape Death, which is portrayed as an unstoppable and unavoidable force of nature. The decision to, so far, not bring back any characters besides Bludworth adds fuel to the speculation of why the new installment is called Final Destination: Bloodlines, ranging from the new characters being related to previous characters to all the new characters being those who get premonitions of death-riddled disasters.

Source: Forbes